Vet / Client Relationships

[Swanny1790]

Another thread prompted these thoughts this morning, perhaps because I'm taking a dozen dogs to my team's veterinarian tomorrow for essentially routine work, rabies vaccinations, a microchip for one dog, and a blood draw for thyroid levels on 1 dog. I could save a couple of hundred dollars by waiting a month for an annual rabies clinic that is provided by our local animal control agency, drawing the blood myself (I have access to a centrifuge to spin it down and I am a human health care worker, so have the necessary skills), and implanting a chip is no big deal either. On the other hand, to my way of thinking having our vet do this easy work is well worthy the additional expense.

With 20 dogs on the property, our veterinarian is a vital part of our team and having ready access to our vet is very important to me. Equally important is having a relationship with a veterinarian that is based on mutual respect.

More often than not, when I take a veterinary problem to Mark, I've already done a lot of 'home work' and I sometimes propose treatment modalities that are not particularly common in our area. When I do, I make it a point to bring copies of the scientific evidence that supports my proposal. Mark is willing to sit down and listen to my rationale, explain his own perspective and the science behind it, and then we can discuss a well reasoned plan of action. Having grown up in a dog mushing kennel and maintaining a mushing kennel of his own, Mark is well accustomed to working with knowledgeable owners, and willing to work with us to accomplish the common goal of happy, healthy working dogs.

Such a vet is a very rare gem and like any other relationship, it's one that was cultivated over time. Part of cultivating that relationship includes helping Mark earn a living. He is practicing in a fairly competitive market, and has to be at the top of his game to compete against practices that have far greater resources to put into their clinics and businesses. Mark has had to match those investments, even though he doesn't have a partnership, corporation or other source of major capitalization. He nonetheless has to maintain an in-house laboratory, up-to-date imaging equipment and a staff of well qualified techs and assistants. All of that stuff costs money that is hard to come by. When I consider the expenses of his practice I am fairly certain that his annual income (profit) is probably comparable to my own. He's earning a living, but he isn't likely to be seen driving a brand new Cadillac or Mercedes anytime soon.

By spending a bit more money for the easy stuff at his clinic, I help keep him in business. By paying the bill on time, every time, I develop a track record of reliability that could be vitally important should I face a major procedure at a time when I am less able to afford it. If I have to negotiate a payment plan, he can be certain that I will meet the obligations of that plan, so be more inclined to extend credit in spite of the best wishes of his office manager.

Finding a really good veterinarian is difficult. We each have our own individual ideals of the "perfect" vet. Some need a vet who is more oriented to behavior than most. Some need a vet that is more inclined to holistic or naturopathic medicine than most. Whatever you seek in a relationship with your dog's vet, when you finally find it, it is well worthwhile to cultivate the relationship in whatever way you can. Some day your dog's health or even his or her life may depend upon it.

[Nettle]

I couldn't agree more. My vet is a gem. I met a lot of dud vets before I joined his practice.

I wouldn't care if mine was a millionaire because he's worth every penny of every fee to me. He is actually very generous with his time.

[Wes]

I also have a wonderful vet. She's very easy to talk to, listens to what I have to say and takes it into account, and she's wonderful with my boys, even nervous Remy. She's a bit supporter of a prey-model raw diet and does offer frozen pre-made raw in her practice. I've never heard of her recommending any other food (aside from a select few high-quality kibbles). I'm extra lucky in that she's also a reptile vet and I can bring my scaley pets in to see her as well. She's about an hour away and one of the more expensive vets in the area, but she is definitely worth it.

[JudyN]

My vet is excellent in many ways - he is conservative in treatment, if possible will just observe Jasper or let me handle him rather than insist on doing something that will make Jasper go postal, and didn't charge for a consultation purely to discuss vaccination, give Jasper some 'quality time' in the consulting room, and draw up a plan of action for getting a needle into him. He's cheap, too, which isn't important to me, but reinforces that he's not in it for the money.

On the other hand, he encouraged me to have Jasper neutered at 10 months because of his aggression, he's not a great fan of raw feeding (but admits I must be doing something right), and I had to push quite hard to get a thyroid test, and to get bloods done when I could tell Jasper 'wasn't quite right' (the bloods were negative and we never did get to the bottom of it, but Jasp picked up after a couple of months so there was definitely something).

So it's important to do your own research, build up a relationship, and, hopefully, develop mutual trust and respect.